Elmira was first
known as Duckworth, whose namesake took a land claim west of the Applegate
Trail in 1852. It had a variety of water-powered mills and sawmills in its
early days, and it was the center of the area's school system for many years
through the 1950s.
Crow, a small
settlement south of Veneta, was also named for a settler and was known for
orchards and dairies. It is the headquarters of the Crow-Applegate-Lorane
School District. Noti was a stop along the stagecoach run and was a rest stop
for mail carriers and travelers (Fern Ridge Business Directory, Fern Ridge
Chamber of Commerce, City of Veneta, 2002-2003).
Veneta was a
late-comer in town development. It was originally platted in 1912 by Edward
Hunter in anticipation of the coming railroad. Mr. Hunter named the community
after his daughter, Veneta, who recently passed away. After the railroad
arrived, hardware, furniture, a grocery store, and hotel soon followed the
early sawmills. The first sawmill was begun in 1917. After the stock market
crash of 1929, timber never again played the dominant role that it did,
although timber management companies continued to base the operations in the
community. Ellmaker and Inmans are important family names in Veneta.
In 1942, the Army
Corps of Engineers damned the Long Tom River to control flooding, turning the
large, marshy lowlands into Fern Ridge Reservoir, and creating fishing, boating
and swimming opportunities.
The
City of Veneta was incorporated in 1962 in order to create a centralized water
system. Veneta had 2523 people in 1990 and 2755 people in 2000, an increase of
8% (Census Data, Table Seven)
Settlement
in the Fern Ridge area has always been rural in character. Dispersed and small
town settlement was the hallmark of most of its history. After the development
of the Fern Ridge Reservoir, the housing areas that developed to its west were
a bit more suburban but the country flavor still dominates. The blending of the
old and the new is evident in this residential area, as the older, dispersed
homes became surrounded by newer and higher density homes. The area is also
characterized by many modular and mobile homes.
It
has only been in the last generation that urban centers have been developing,
as Veneta and Elmira have oriented commercial activity to the highway and
commuting has become the dominant economic strategy. A new Bi-Mart in Veneta
and new mini-malls along the highway are signs of changing settlement in the
unit.
The
City of Veneta has been experiencing many requests for subdivision development
and many expect the community to grow rapidly. The growth is likely to be
connected to the Eugene/Springfield labor market and not to any local job base.
Publics
Fern Ridge has
many long-term families with several generations of history in the area. Timber
families are still a strong element of community life. In recent years,
commuters have generated housing demand and these families represent the newest
element in the community. The retail business public in Fern Ridge is growing.
Networks
See
Section Two.
Work Routines
Two lumber mills
in Noti, Swanson Brothers, and Swanson-Superior Forest Products, are still
active in the area. They employ 60 workers and 120 workers, respectively. Swanson
Brothers began in 1937. One is a second growth mill that runs 4 ten hour
shifts.
"As kids, we took for granted we'd be working in the
mills."
"In 1925, the hill behind my mother's kitchen was
logged. It wasn't planted and I lived to see it logged again. That was in '92,
before she died."
Veneta has limited
commercial and industrial facilities, limiting the tax base and assuring its
status as bedroom community to the larger Eugene/Springfield metropolitan area.
One estimate is that 85% of the area's workforce commutes to jobs outside the
area (Fern Ridge Business Directory, Fern Ridge Chamber of Commerce, City of
Veneta, 2002-2003).
One of the City's
goals is to balance the job/housing ratio by creating a local employment base.
It sees itself as the primary service area for the Fern Ridge area, including
the Fern Ridge Reservoir. Job growth is expected in retail trade and services,
real estate, education, government, and construction. Veneta also supports
home-based businesses as a policy for economic development, estimating that 5%
of total jobs fall into this category (Veneta Comprehensive Plan, Ordinance
#416, 2000).
Much of Veneta's
commercial activity has moved from its old downtown to the West Lane Center,
along Highway 126, reflecting the increased importance of car traffic to the
local economy. The old downtown has many closed businesses and buildings in
disrepair. In the old days, Elliot's Store was very well known in the region
for carrying items not carried by others.
"If you couldn't find something in Eugene, you went
out to Elliotts."
Oregon Dome Inc. (www.domes.com) is located near Veneta, and
vineyards and nurseries dot the countryside.
"My kids all stayed here and they're all doing
different things. Now people drive to town for work. A lot of people survive
with a little of this and a little of that."
"There
are many long-term families in this area."
Support Services
For 32 years, Fern
Ridge has been the site of the Oregon Country Fair, a hippie-oriented,
counter-culture event of colorful clothing, arts, crafts, music and food. The
event attracted 44,000 people in 2001 (Fern Ridge Business Directory, Fern
Ridge Chamber of Commerce, City of Veneta, 2002-2003).
In 2001, a
community risk assessment was compiled for the City of Veneta by the Lane
Council of Governments. The study concluded that youth of the area are in need
of greater services than are currently provided. The City of Veneta has
purchased a 2.5 acre lot that will be the site for a proposed Territorial Park
and Youth Center. The project responds to the needs expressed in the community
for positive outlets for the community's youths. There is also an informal
network of people in the community involved in youth sports.
When asked about
local successes, residents pointed to the new Fern Ridge Library that was
created through a community-based effort (Figure 79).
Figure 79
The Fern Ridge Library in Veneta
Zumwalt Park
located by Fern Ridge Reservoir, was developed by the Corps of Engineers and is
administered by Lane County Parks. Interpretive signs point to the nearby
Applegate Trail and its role in fostering early settlement.
The Applegate
Trail Museum is housed in a former school that was moved from Spencer to Crow.
From there, it was moved to Veneta in hopes of attracting more volunteers for
the museum. The museum founder, Virginia Nelson, was an Applegate descendant.
The rural schools
of the area continue to struggle to maintain enrollments and funding. The
Crow-Applegate-Lorane School District has to close a school this year and send
7th and 8th graders to Crow High School. That school has
a capacity of 350 but attendance is only about 140.
The Fern Ridge
Community Partnership is a local non-profit organization devoted to youth
issues, family support and community livability. Just three years old, they are
a group of five. They run the "Peer Court" program in both Crow and Elmira High
Schools for youth involved in reckless burning, trespass, vandalism, and the
like. The Partnership through its "Freedom Road" also takes youth to the state
prison to inhibit delinquent tendency. Recently, the Partnership has proposed a
two-acre skate park and youth center that a local youth activist is
spearheading, with city and community support.
Recreational Activities
See Section Three.
B.
Citizen Issues Related to Community Life
Youth
"We are lacking services here for kids. There just
isn't enough for what we're dealing with."
"Kids have parties out at the landings [old logging
landings]. We lose one senior a year to alcohol-related traffic accidents. Kids
here are in high poverty. The schools lost their mental health counselors."
Growth and
Development
"Veneta has the potential to boom. The limit has
been the water and sewer moratorium, but that has been lifted. Not everybody
wants growth."
Section
Two:
Communication
Strategies
A. Informal Networks and Communication
Dixie's Too Café
is located two miles east of Veneta and is well-used especially by long-term
and retired local people.
Violet Shafer is a
long-time resident with knowledge of local history.
B. Formal Groups and Communication
Figure 80
Organizations With Interest in Public Lands in the Fern
Ridge Area
|
Organization
|
Contact Information
|
Mission
|
|
Fern Ridge Community
Partnership
|
Doug Perry
(541) 935-2226
|
Youth issues; family
support; community livability
|
|
Long Tom Watershed
Council
|
Dana Erickson
(541) 683-6578
|
Watershed restoration
|
|
Fern Ridge Chamber of
Commerce
|
Frankie Hiatt
P.O. Box 335
Veneta, OR 97487
(541) 935-3950
hiatts123@aol.com
|
|
Section
Three:
The
Public Lands Perspective
A. Uses of and Orientation to Public
Lands
Fern Ridge
Reservoir is the site for boat races from both local and national interests. It
has several day use areas, overnight camping, and two public marinas. The
Eugene Yacht Club and the marinas sponsor major boat racing events. The
adjoining wetlands are popular for wildlife viewing. The lake reportedly gets a
million visitors a year.
One of the goals
of Veneta's Comprehensive Plan is long-term sustainable development,
emphasizing the protection of wildlife habitat and wetlands, while trying to
provide recreation, education, and aesthetic opportunities for residents. A
recent inventory of natural resources has been accepted by the City (Veneta
Comprehensive Plan, Ordinance #416, 2000).
Lane County Fire
District #1 is housed in Veneta. It has 7 career employees and over 50
volunteers but the fire chief stated their level of service is not adequate for
the area. The district works "hand in glove" with the Oregon Department of
Forestry in fire prevention activities with local landowners, and with BLM.
"Two years ago, BLM asked us to standby for
emergency because of a tree sitter in a timber sale, and we did."
Residents reported
that public road closures have not occurred much in this area. Industrial lands
are plentiful. Roseboro and Swanson Brothers are industrial landowners in the
area, and the State Department of Forestry manages several state parcels as
well.
"Most
companies try to keep roads open for PR [public relations] purposes unless the
fire risk is high or they are logging in a block. It's hard to do closures in
the checkerboard area."
ODF has a large
office in Veneta and strong ties with the Forest Service and BLM. By contract,
the office is in a fire protection agreement with BLM. ODF staff provide
education on fire prevention, they have people on patrol, they issue permits,
and talk with campers. ODF also trains personnel from rural fire districts,
most of whom are volunteers. ODF staff reportedly rotate less than BLM and have
long-standing ties with many families in this area. Private and industrial
landowners form the basis of the ODF board and fire program. ODF offers
technical assistance to local watershed councils, and because of the Forestry
Practices Act, assists others on water quality issues.
"We coordinate on equipment, make sure we
communicate. We worked with them [BLM] on their prescribed fire program in the
1970s but the goals today are more nuanced - more detailed and individual."
C.
Themes and Citizen Issues Related to
Natural
Resource Management
Themes
"We are an outdoor
community." Residents commented that outdoor living is part of everyday life
and part of the reason they stay in the Fern Ridge area. In the past, the
outdoor lifestyle was expressed in work routines, as in timber and wood
products production work. Today, the outdoor value is more expressed in
recreation activities.
"My family goes to Florence, Whittaker Creek. We're
not too snow oriented, so we don't go to the Cascades as much."
Citizen
Issues Related to Natural Resource Management
Recreation
"The dune buggies and vehicles have taken over [at
the Oregon Dunes]. There's nowhere for people to walk who aren't riding. I grew
up going to the dunes, playing in sands, enjoying them without riding. I won't
take my daughter to play there now." [Woman in her twenties]
"You pay through your teeth now. There is no free
use of anything anymore, whether for picnics or hiking. You pay a fee at
trailheads. You go for a picnic and pay a fee."
"Environmentalists go too far. My message to the
Forest Service is, 'Don't let the radicals take over. Keep a common sense
approach.'"
Forest Management
"The checkerboard areas make it hard to do
prescribed fires. Most fire prevention is to educate the public. Fire parties
with kids is one of our biggest fire risks." [ODF staff]
Watershed Councils
"The watershed councils are a little messy.
Sometimes I think they should just give the money to agencies and tell them
what job to do.
They say education is the purpose, but I haven't seen the hoped for spinoffs.
We still need law enforcement; we still have complaints."
C. Management Opportunities
The reduced
timber sale activity of the Forest Service and BLM has also reduced contact
with ODF. Now most contact between these agencies occurs with fire people.
Still it seems that ODF is a well-regarded agency in this area that has a
close-to-the-ground relationship with many rural people. The Forest Service and
BLM could utilize these relationships for educational purposes related to new
programs and initiatives.
The watershed
councils can be supported by participation, funding, grant writing assistance,
technical support, and leadership.
Youth activists in
the community were very interested in the idea of linking youth activities to
watershed restoration activities of the Watershed Council. These are
relationships the natural resource agencies could help foster.
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